Federal officials are soliciting public comment on a proposed $26 million cleanup plan for a Superfund site on the city’s north side.
The Yeoman Creek site contains two leaking municipal landfills that were used from the late 1950s to the late 1960s. The 62-acre site was placed on the federal Superfund list of the nation’s most polluted properties in 1989.
The chemicals that are leaking include heavy metals that have been found in groundwater, surface water and sediment, nearby wetlands as well as Yeoman Creek, which flows into the Waukegan River and then Lake Michigan. In addition, gases from the landfill, such as methane, have been found to be seeping into the atmosphere and may pose a risk of explosion.
The three-year cleanup plan was proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which will hold a public hearing at 7 p.m. Thursday to explain the proposal and solicit public opinion. The meeting will be in the auditorium at the Waukegan Public Library, 128 N. County St.
The public comment period ends on June 15.